Okay, by now you know that I love Hugh grant movies! So needless to say, I loved this movie too. The thing I love about him is that he doesn’t try too hard to fit in. He found his niche with romantic comedies and comedic light hearted movies in general and he’s sticking to it despite the criticism that he doesn’t do any serious “acting” roles. He says “I know this is what I’m good at, I found the one thing I fit in and its making me money and fame, why would I want to change it?”. How great is that philosophy? And its been working for him for over 15 years now !

In this movie, he plays the character of Alex Fletcher, a washed-up 1980’s pop star who once belonged to a group called “PoP”. Their super hit song was ‘Pop Goes My Heart’. He is now reduced to playing state fairs and high school reunion dances with a standard list of 3 songs from their once hit album. What’s worse is, his fame is burning out. As a last opportunity, Fletcher is given the chance to write and record a duet with pop diva Cora Corman( a take on young stars these days like Shakira and Lindsay Lohan). He just needs to produce a hit song by the end of the week, and Cora needs to approve. Enter Drew Barrymore as Sophie Fisher, the quirky plant lady who has a flair for words. Fletcher convinces a reluctant Fisher to collaborate on the song together. And then you can guess what happens….

This movie is yet another romantic comedy under his belt, but his comedic timing is refreshing every time I see it. Its deft and witty. No matter how empty-headed or fluffy the script or the story is, Hugh Grant manages to charm his way through and uplift the movie from its mediocrity with his charming and charismatic persona. Oh and Who knew Hugh Grant could sing? He has sung all the songs in this “music” based story and he’s surprisingly good !

The video of his 80’s hit “Pop goes my heart” is a fantastic mock and perfectly captures the classic music videos of the 1980’s. It’s use of checkerboard backgrounds, cheesy transitions, split-screens and horrible musical scene reenactments is the highlight of the film!

Grant is well versed at charm, and Barrymore is comfortable as the quirky girl next door. However, the chemistry is severely lacking between the two making their romance a bit random and obligatory almost! This should normally be the death of a romantic comedy, but somehow it isn’t!! There are other things in the movie that make you overlook this flaw. Newcomer Haley Bennett as Cora Coleman has perfectly captured the current state of sex symbolism in pop music

Overall, the movie is a charmer and a delight despite its few flaws. Everyone wants to indulge in some unreal, sappy, ideal moment once in a while , at least I do, and this movie does exactly that.